It has been more than a year now since the first cases of COVID-19 were reported coming out of Wuhan, China. At first, Chinese doctors weren’t exactly sure what type of an infection they were dealing with, but related it to something akin to pneumonia. China notified the World Health Organization (WHO) at the end of December 2019 of a cluster of patients exhibiting pneumonia symptoms, leading to the identification of a novel coronavirus. Shortly thereafter, China announced the first deaths related to the spread of the virus and released to the WHO the genetic sequence for COVID-19. On January 13, 2020, the Ministry of Public Health in Thailand reported a confirmed case of COVID-19 in a patient who had traveled from Wuhan. This was the first incident of the coronavirus outside the borders of China, the beginning of the global spread of the pandemic.

Now, the entire world is well acquainted with COVID-19. Merriam Webster’s Dictionary announced that the word of the year was in fact “pandemic”. The WHO and worldwide governments have been racing to treat patients, discover a viable vaccine, and most importantly, contain the virus. Even toddlers know what it means to social distance and wear a mask in public now. While some countries, like the United States, continue to see a rise in COVID-19 cases and deaths, others have finally been able to slow down the spread of the virus. Though Thailand was the second country to report positive cases of COVID-19, they have also been successful in lowering their numbers drastically. And to see that COVID-19 is fully eradicated from within the borders of Thailand, the government will be enlisting the help of drones.

Thailand has rigorously tracked all positive COVID-19 cases to ensure that anyone in contact with the disease can be stopped from further spreading to other citizens. The government also put a strict ban on travel, something that has greatly hurt an economy that depends on tourism. In 2019, before the pandemic, Thailand saw nearly 40 million tourists which brought in more than $60 billion. It wasn’t until this past October that Thailand implemented a special long-stay tourist visa that would allow visitors to safely quarantine upon reaching the country. This brought roughly 1,000 foreign tourists to Thailand, something the economy desperately needed.

Through Thailand’s strict quarantine measures they have been able to nearly rid the country of COVID-19. As of November, Thailand has only had around 4,000 positive COVID-19 cases and around 60 fatalities. However, the Thai government has been on a race to track down around 200 people that have illegally crossed into Thailand from Myanmar where spikes have seen nearly 1,000 positive COVID-19 cases each day over the past weeks. Thailand saw an increase of around 100 positive cases from people crossing the Myanmar border without adhering to the strict 14 day quarantine.

To stop people from crossing the border from Myanmar and spreading COVID-19, Thailand is taking drastic measures. On Wednesday, December 2, 2020, Thailand’s Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul urged local governments to criminally prosecute 4 Thais who tested positive for COVID-19 upon crossing the border from Myanmar without quarantining. However, the government knows that they need to be vigilant in patrolling the Thailand Myanmar border, a difficult task indeed.

The Thailand Myanmar border stretches just under 1,500 miles through mountains and forests. Though there are official border crossings, there are many areas for people to simply cross without detection. In response to at least 16 positive cases coming from people crossing the border, Thailand is set to deploy drones along areas of the border without checkpoints. Police will pilot drones regularly through forested terrain to track anyone who may be trying to cross illegally. The drones will be equipped with infrared cameras so that they can be used during the day and night to track people.

The government has not stated what they will do with anyone they find crossing the border with the drones. Chances are these individuals will be sent back or forced to quarantine. What is clear is that Thailand aims to completely eradicate COVID-19 from within its borders. Urging people to maintain social distancing, wear a mask in public, and quarantine is the first step for the Thai government. To ensure that their borders are safe and that the virus is not being brought into the country, drones will be the government’s final defense.